[Reporter’s Notebook] Why We Don’t Have to Constantly Worry About Car Safety

I recently received a car recall notice. It stated that in the event of an accident, the safety belt could activate and cause fragments that might injure passengers. It was discovered that one of the parts, the gas generator, could eject its cover outward during operation. Although this was something that would have been difficult to detect even if an accident occurred, I felt somewhat safer thanks to the "post-incident measures."

The reason you don’t have to feel anxious every time you get in a car is that manufacturers establish strict safety standards not only when making the cars but also throughout the process of consumers driving them. Common passenger cars usually weigh over 2 tons and generate power equivalent to hundreds of horses. They can operate as dangerous weapons capable of harming people at any time.

In South Korea, the type approval system was applied in the past for cars and parts, but it was replaced by self-certification about 20 years ago. Type approval is a method where authorities pre-verify and approve safety standards, whereas self-certification requires manufacturers to comply with standards themselves and take full responsibility for defects. This allows companies more autonomy during research and development, but it also demands more meticulous monitoring to ensure compliance with post-market safety standards.

This is where the role of the Korea Automobile Safety Research Institute shines. Operating the automobile recall center, it continuously tracks defects related to safety and investigates whether self-certification is appropriate. It collaborated with frontline vehicle inspection stations to examine the engine oil increase issue that caused controversy among car enthusiasts and ultimately led to free repairs. Last year, it also discovered that Chinese-made electric buses failed to meet performance standards through document reviews. In just the past year, it identified 296 manufacturing defects and led recalls affecting approximately 3.25 million vehicles. Only a decade ago, the annual recall target was about 200,000 vehicles, so this represents more than a tenfold increase.

Social interest in safety has never been higher and is bound to increase further. Nevertheless, the reality faced by the Korea Automobile Safety Research Institute, which is at the forefront of automobile recall work, is not smooth. They need to purchase new cars to investigate manufacturing defects and revise testing standards to keep up with future vehicle trends, but the budget is insufficient. In line with the government’s policy of tightening belts in public enterprises, increasing personnel or expanding the organization is out of the question. The budget for defect investigation decreased from 7.8 billion won in 2020 to 7.2 billion won this year.